in botany, the popular name for Allium ursinum, a bulbous plant 6 to 18 in. high, with ovate-lanceolate stalked leaves tapering at the apex, surrounding a naked stalk bearing a flat-topped umbel of small white flowers. A rather pretty plant, common in woods and in hedgebanks in spring, but with a pungent garlic-like smell, which is characteristic of the genus (see ALLIuM).